Google Workspace Updates: September 2021

View Alert Center notifications directly from the Admin console toolbar

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Quick launch summary You can now quickly access Alert Center alerts from anywhere in the Admin console from the toolbar at top of the page. Selecting the new bell icon will surface the ten latest alerts, along with a brief description. You can click on a specific alert to open it within the Alert Center, or click “View all” to open the Alert Center.

We hope this feature makes it easier for you to discover and stay on-top of important alerts within your organization.
Getting started

Admins: This feature will be available by default to Admins with Alert Center access. Visit the Help Center to learn more about the Alert Center and viewing alert details.
End users: There is no end user impact or action required.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: This feature is available now.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Quickly access Google Drive files in Chrome browser

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Update[March 30, 2023]: This rollout for this feature is now complete.

[May 10, 2022]: Rollout for this feature is now complete for customers in the US. We will share another update when rollout begins for all other regions as soon as possible.

[March 8, 2022]: Rollout for this feature has been temporarily paused. We apologize for the delay and we will share an update once rollout resumes.

What’s changing We’re adding a card onto the New Tab Page in your Chrome browser that will surface relevant files from your Google Drive, making it easier and more efficient to find the files you need. In 2019, we launched the ability for some users to quickly search for files in the Chrome browser URL bar. Today, we’re taking that experience one step further by bringing intelligent file suggestions directly into your New Tab Page in Chrome .

Search for files in the Chrome browser URL bar
Who’s impactedAdmins and end usersWhy you’d use itEnd users will be able to access their highest priority Drive files straight from the Chrome Desktop new tab page. The easily accessible interface will save end user time and mental load to navigate to relevant files. Getting startedAdmins:

This feature will be ON by default and can be disabled at the domain/OU/group level as long as the default New Tab Page experience is available to our users. This feature will not impact users for whom admins who have set a different New Tab Page experience using Chrome policies. Visit the Help Center to learn more about turning Google Drive cards on or off for your organization.

Allow or disable Google file suggestionsEnd users:

This feature will be on by default as long as users have not changed their New Tab Page experience. It can be disabled and re-enabled by the user by clicking the ‘Customize Chrome’ button in the bottom right of the new tab page.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility)starting on September 29, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers.

Also available to users with personal Google Accounts.

Resources

Allow Drive file suggestions in Chrome Browser

Set Chrome policies for users or browsers

Set your homepage and startup page

Replace your background with a video in Google Meet on Android

Tuesday, September 28, 2021

What’s changingIn addition to replacing your Google Meet background with a static image on web and mobile, you can now replace your background with a video. At the moment, you can select from six Google made videos such as a classroom, a party, a beach and more — more options will be available. This feature is already available on Google Meet on web and iOS.

Use a video background to make calls more fun.

Who’s impacted

Admins and end users

Why you’d use it

Custom backgrounds can help you show more of your personality, as well to help hide your surroundings to maintain privacy. With the option of replacing your background with video, we hope this makes your video calls more fun.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout to eligible devices (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 28, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
Available to users with personal Google accounts

Resources

Comment size increasing in Google Docs

Monday, September 27, 2021

Quick launch summary You can now make more efficient use of your screen space in Google Docs. Currently, comments in Docs are 35 characters wide in the sidebar, regardless of how much space is available. Now, we've increased the comment width to a maximum of 50 characters, a +43% increase in width. Comment width will intelligently scale based on your browser window to maximize the use of available screen space. While screen time may increase in remote and hybrid work environments, this update makes more efficient use of the space by fitting more content on a single line and enhancing readability.

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

End users: This feature will be ON by default and will expand automatically on a larger monitor. Visit the Help Center to learn more about using comments & action items

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 27, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Using comments and action items

Renaming “whitelisted domains” to “allowlisted domains” in the Admin console

Monday, September 27, 2021

Quick launch summaryWe’re updating instances of “whitelisted” in the Admin console to “allowlisted”. This change more accurately describes this action, as well as eliminates a non-inclusive term from our products. This change helps build toward our goal of having inclusive language throughout Google Workspace products.

Getting started

Admins: No action required.
End users: No action required.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: This feature is available now.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Business customers
Not available to G Suite Basic customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Allow external sharing with only trusted domains

Add image watermarks in Google Docs

Monday, September 27, 2021

Quick launch summaryYou can now add image watermarks directly into Google Docs.

Use the insert menu to add a watermark to a doc

Insert an image watermark

This watermark image will repeat behind the text on every page of your document. This is useful for adding company logos, branding, and custom designs. Additionally, image watermarks are preserved when importing or exporting documents from Microsoft Word.
We hope this feature helps you better customize your documents and share them with confidence, no matter the application you use.
Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: To get started, go to Insert > Watermark in a doc. Visit the Help Center to learn more about adding image watermarks in Docs.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 27, 2021
Scheduled Release domains: Full rollout (1–3 days for feature visibility) starting on October 11, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Help: Change page settings on Google Docs

Live translated captions in Google Meet available in beta

Monday, September 27, 2021

What's changing

Live translated captions help video call participants communicate better by translating a spoken language to captions in another language. Live translated captions will initially be available in beta and will support English meetings translated to Spanish, French, Portuguese and German. It’s available in meetings organized by Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Teaching & Learning Upgrade users.

Learn more and express interest in the beta here.

Who's impactedAdmins and end usersWhy it’s importantTranslated captions helps Google Meet video calls to be more global, inclusive and effective by removing language ability as a barrier to collaboration. By helping users consume the content in a preferred language, you can help equalize information sharing, learning, and collaboration, and make sure your meetings are as effective as possible.
This could be particularly useful for all-hands meetings and training programs with globally distributed teams, ensuring every employee understands and is not disadvantaged due to language skills.
Live translated captions can also be impactful for educators by enhancing communication with students who speak a different language than the instructor. This can also enable students to connect with other students across the globe who speak a different language. Translation can increase inclusivity with parents and community stakeholders by bridging people with diverse backgrounds.
Getting started

Admins: Learn more and express interest in the beta here.

End users: The feature is not available until an admin enrolls in the beta. When enrolled, the feature will be available by default. To use it, during a Google Meet video call go to Settings > Captions > Translated captions to turn it on. Visit the Help Center to learn more about Live Translated Captions.

Rollout pace

The beta is available now. Learn more and express interest in the beta here. When your domain has been approved for the beta and the feature is ready to use, you’ll receive more information via email.

Availability

Available to meetings organized by Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Teaching & Learning Upgrade customers.

Not available to meetings organized by Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Enterprise Essentials, Education Fundamentals, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Help: Live Translated Captions in Google Meet

Beta Application

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - September 21, 2021

Friday, September 24, 2021

New updates
New look and feel for Workspace Updates email subscriptions Starting September 29, we're going to be improving the look and feel of the emails you receive when you subscribe to Workspace Updates.

The emails themselves will be sent from noreply@workspaceupdates.withgoogle.com, so be sure to update any inbox filters or labels you may have and check your spam folders if you don't immediately see them.
Emails for the Workspace Updates Blog in non-English markets will update to this new format in the coming weeks.
If you have any feedback about these emails after September 29th, please feel back to let us know in the linked form.

Full rollout (1-3 days for availability). | Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts. | Workspace Updates Blog Email Subscription Feedback

Previous announcements

The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details.

Upgrade to the newest version of the Google Chat app

We’ve recently released a new version of this app. Users who are still on the older Chat PWA version and will see an in-app banner nudging them to upgrade by visiting chat.google.com. | Learn more.

Improved visibility in Google Meet on web

Google Meet on the web now automatically detects when a user appears underexposed and enhances the brightness to improve their visibility. | Learn more.

Control the ability to present to Google Meet from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides with a new Admin setting

Admins can turn the ability to present from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides directly to Google Meet on or off for their organization with a new setting. | Learn more.

One-click recommended actions in the Alert Center

In the Alert Center, Admins will see new one-click recommended actions for various alerts, which they can implement without leaving the Alert Center. | Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers. | Learn more.

Improved Search In Gmail on Android

You can now quickly and easily filter email and search results on Android mobile devices to find the one specific email or information you’re looking for with new search filters. | Learn more.

New graphs for metrics over time in Meet Quality Tool

We’ve added detailed metrics over time for endpoints in Meet Quality Tool, which will help admins perform more advanced troubleshooting. | Learn more.

Perform refined email searches with new rich filters in Gmail on web

When searching in Gmail on web, enhanced search chips will provide richer drop-down lists with more options that help you apply additional filters. | Learn more.

Easily chat with meeting participants from a Google Calendar event

Within the Calendar event on web or mobile, you’ll see a Chat icon next to the guest list — simply select this icon to create a group chat containing all event participants. | Learn more.

Ability to mute all Google Meet participants at once rolling out to mobile platforms

Earlier this year, we announced the ability for meeting hosts to mute everyone all at once in Google Meet on desktops/laptop devices. This feature has begun rolling out to iOS devices, with Android availability coming later this year. | Learn more.

For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

Ability to mute all Google Meet participants at once rolling out to mobile platforms

Wednesday, September 22, 2021

Quick launch summaryEarlier this year, we announced the ability for meeting hosts to mute everyone all at once in Google Meet on desktops/laptop devices. This change gives the host more control by helping them prevent or stop disruptions coming from unmuted users. Meeting hosts and co-hosts are the only users in a meeting who can use the “mute all” feature. Once all participants are muted, the hosts and co-hosts cannot unmute them. However, users will be able to unmute themselves as needed. Please note: Users joining meetings using Pexip devices will not be muted. This feature is rolling out now on iOS, with availability for Android coming in later in 2021. We’ll provide an update on the Workspace Updates Blog once that becomes available. Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

End users: This feature will be available by default to meeting hosts. Visit the Help Center to learn more about muting participants in Google Meet.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 22, 2021.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Also available to Google Workspace Individual customers and users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Workspace Updates Blog: Add up to 25 co-hosts per meeting and expanded safety features for Google Meet

Google Help: Pin or mute Google Meet participants

Easily chat with meeting participants from a Google Calendar event

Wednesday, September 22, 2021

What’s changing We’re adding an option that makes it easy to chat with meeting attendees directly from Google Calendar. Within the Calendar event on web or mobile, you’ll see a Chat icon next to the guest list — simply select this icon to create a group chat containing all event participants. Please note: this only applies to participants within your organization, external attendees are not included in the chat group.This makes it simple to chat with guests before, during, or after any meeting. Chat with event attendees directly from the Calendar event on mobile devices

Chat with event attendees directly from the Calendar event on mobile devices

Chat with event attendees directly from the Calendar event on web
Who’s impacted End users Why you’d use it Previously, the main way to communicate with Calendar event attendees was via email. However, there are times when Chat may be preferred to email for communication. For example, sending a message that you’re running late, or sharing resources with attendees not long before the meeting starts. Now, the email and chat options are side by side on the calendar event. This can help you quickly choose whichever form of communication you prefer, and start conversations with just a few taps. When combined with Chat suggestions, it’s always easy to communicate with event participants via chat.
Getting started

Admins: This feature will be ON by default for all users with Chat and Calendar turned on. Use our Help Center for more information on managing which services are available to your users.

End users: This feature will be ON by default. Visit the Help Center to learn more about this feature.

Rollout pace On the web:

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 20th, 2021

Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 4th, 2021

On mobile:

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on October 4, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Turn on external chat options

Google Workspace Updates Blog: Google Chat will automatically suggest 1:1 chat based on your Google Calendar

Perform refined email searches with new rich filters in Gmail on web

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

Quick launch summary When searching in Gmail on web, enhanced search chips will provide richer drop-down lists with more options that help you apply additional filters. For example, when you click on the “From” chip, you’ll now be able to quickly type a name, choose from a list of suggested senders, or search for emails from multiple senders. Available now for all users, search chips make it quicker and easier to find the specific email or information you’re looking for.
A richer drop down list in search

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

End users: There is no end user setting for this feature, chips will appear automatically when you perform a search in Gmail on the web. Use the Help Center to learn more about search in Gmail.

Rollout pace

This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers. Also available to users with personal Google Accounts

New graphs for metrics over time in Meet Quality Tool

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

What’s changing We’ve added detailed metrics over time for endpoints in Meet Quality Tool, which will help admins perform more advanced troubleshooting. When clicking any endpoint in the meeting timeline, admins can now view charts showing:

Average CPU usage,
Connection delay,
Microphone audio level (what is heard at the user's location),
Received audio level (audio from others),
Sent video packet loss,
Received video packet loss.

When viewing metrics for meetings that are still in progress, you can refresh to see a timeline and metrics with near-real-time values.

Please note: The available metrics for any given endpoint depend on which device and Meet client was used for the connection.

Who’s impacted

Admins

Why it’s important

There are many factors that can affect the quality of a meeting — by providing detailed information and metrics of those factors overtime, admins can more effectively analyze and troubleshoot issues and therefore improve the quality of meetings for their users.

For example, the graph below shows a user who experienced a loss of video during a meeting.

The admin can further drill down into the metrics and see that the exact time of the video loss corresponds with the loss of the user’s network connection. Using these metrics, the admin was able to quickly diagnose this as a temporary network connection issue.

Getting started

Rollout pace

This feature is available now.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Improved Search In Gmail on Android

Monday, September 20, 2021

Quick SummaryYou can now quickly and easily filter email and search results on Android mobile devices to find the one specific email or information you’re looking for. Search filters can be used independently or post-search, helping you choose filtering options from rich drop-down lists. For example, you can type a query and further narrow results by selecting search filters like from: colleague’s name, or a specific timeframe. When searching for emails by sender, users can choose from a list of suggested senders or search for emails from multiple senders.
Filtering email and search results

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: There is no end user setting for this feature. When searching in Gmail on Android, you can use the search filters below the search box.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 20, 2021. We anticipate rollout to be completed by the end of October 2021.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

One-click recommended actions in the Alert Center

Monday, September 20, 2021

What’s changing In the Alert Center, Admins will see new one-click recommended actions for various alerts, which they can implement without leaving the Alert Center. You’ll see recommended actions such as:

Marking an email message as phishing,
Suspending a user,
Restoring a user after they’ve been suspended,
Blocking devices,
Deleting email messages and more.

When viewing an alert detail, you'll see a recommended action such as "Delete message" with a link for admins to take quick action.

Who’s impacted Admins
Why it’s important We hope these suggested actions make it easier for Admins to swiftly triage, take action, and remedy various incidents within your org faster.

Additionally, this update builds on previous improvements in the Admin console such as the updated homepage, redesigned navigation experience and a streamlined management of users and domains.

Getting started

Admins: Visit the Help Center to learn more about taking action in response to alerts.
End users: There is no end user impact.

Rollout pace

This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers
Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Education Fundamentals, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Control the ability to present to Google Meet from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides with a new Admin setting

Monday, September 20, 2021

Quick summary Earlier this year, we announced the ability to present from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides directly to Google Meet. Beginning today, Admins can turn this feature on or off for their organization with a new setting. We hope this gives Admins more control over how their users share content in Meet calls.

Within the Admin console, navigate to Apps > Google Workspace > Google Meet > Meet Video Settings to configure the "Integrations" setting.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Full rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 20, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
Not available to Google Workspace Individual customers or users with personal Google accounts

Resources

Improved visibility in Google Meet on web

Monday, September 20, 2021

Quick summary Last year, we introduced low-light mode for Meet on mobile, using AI to automatically adjust your video to make you more visible if you’re in a dark environment. Having too much light behind you—such as a window on a sunny day—can also be challenging for many cameras. Google Meet on the web now automatically detects when a user appears underexposed and enhances the brightness to improve their visibility.

Google Meet will automatically detect when a user is underexposed and will enhance the brightness for improved visibility.

For illustrative purposes onlyGetting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.

End users: Automatic recommendation of the feature is available to eligible devices. For all other users, visit the Help Center to learn more about turning Light Adjustment on or off for your account.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) from September 20, 2021

Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) October 4, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Help: Turn on automatic video lighting adjustment

Upgrade to the newest version of the Google Chat app

Monday, September 20, 2021

Quick launch summaryLast year, we introduced the new Google Chat Progressive Web Application (PWA), which provides a fast, reliable, and engaging way to use Chat on any desktop device with the Google Chrome web browser. We’ve recently released a new version of this app.
While most users have already been automatically upgraded to the new app, a small number of users are still on the older Chat PWA version and will see an in-app banner nudging them to upgrade by visiting chat.google.com.

Banner to upgrade to the newest version of the Chat PWA

The banner will read “You are using an old version of Chat. You need to uninstall this old version first, then visit chat.google.com to install the new version.”
Beginning September 27, 2021, users who have not yet upgraded will no longer be able to use their previously installed Chat app. Instead, they’ll see a screen directing them to upgrade to the new version of Google Chat.

Screen telling users the old PWA is no longer available

Screen users will see when the old PWA version is no longer available

If users already have the new version of the app available but are still using the old app, they will simply see a screen asking them to uninstall this old version.

Screen shown to users who have installed the new PWA version but try to access the old version once it is no longer available

Screen shown to users that already have the new app, when the old PWA version is no longer available

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Users of the older Chat PWA version will see this banner appear in their app in the coming weeks until it is shut down beginning September 27, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Help: Install the Google Chat standalone app

Preventing users from blocking users in trusted domains

Friday, September 17, 2021

Quick launch summary We recently launched the ability to block another user in Google Drive. Based on your feedback, we’re updating how the feature can be applied to users in trusted domains.

Previously, user blocks could be applied to any user outside of your domain. With this update, user blocks will no longer work with users in trusted domains. Any previous blocks established for users in trusted domains will no longer be enforced in Google Drive, but will continue to be enforced in other apps and services.
Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 17, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers.

Resources

Design your own custom themes in new Google Sites

Thursday, September 16, 2021

What’s changing You can now create highly customized themes in new Google Sites that align with your organization’s brand guidelines or your own personal style.

Who’s impacted End users

Why you’d use it Currently, there are six pre-created themes with limited customization options, which are helpful for quickly creating a consistent look and feel for sites. With the addition of custom themes, you have greater control over things like:

Fonts and text style,
Colors,
Brand images,
Navigation settings,
Style of components such as buttons, and more.

We hope that custom themes and custom templates allow you to create and share sites that best match your brand guidelines or specific style.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers Available to users with personal Google Accounts

Resources

Google Help: Change how your site looks

Set the default state for Quick access and Host Management in Google Meet with new Admin settings

Wednesday, September 15, 2021

Quick summary Recently, we announced the expansion of the meeting safety features and the ability to add up to 25 co-hosts in Google Meet. We’re now adding two new controls that will allow admins to configure whether the Host Management and Quick access features will be on or off by default in their domain.

In both cases, if the feature is set to OFF by default, meeting hosts can manually enable Quick access or Host Management from inside the meeting. Please see below for detailed information on the default Admin setting for each feature.
Getting started

Admins:

Host Management:Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing Meet safety settings and Host Management.
Quick access: Visit the Help Center to learn more about managing Quick access settings

End users: When enabled by your Admin, use the Help Center to learn more about adding or removing people from a Google Meet video call and assigning host privileges.

Rollout pace

Host Management

This feature is available now.

Quick Access:

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 15, 2021

Availability Host management is:

OFF by default for: Google Workspace Business Starter, Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Essentials, and Non-profits customers.

ON by default for: Google Workspace for Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals, Education Standard, Education Plus, the Teaching and Learning upgrade, and Frontline customers

Not available to Google Workspace Individual customers or users with personal Google Accounts.

Quick access is:

ON by default for all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers.

Not available to Google Workspace Individual customers or users with personal Google Accounts.

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Manage Meet safety settings
Google Meet Help: Add or remove people from a Google Meet video call
Google Meet Help: Add Co-hosts in Google Meet

New logo coming to Google Tasks

Wednesday, September 15, 2021

Quick launch summaryWe’re updating the Google Tasks logo to better align with products across Google Workspace.

New logo

Old logo

This new logo will appear everywhere you see Tasks, across the web and on your mobile devices.
Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: There is no end user setting for this feature. The logo will automatically update across platforms over the coming weeks.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 23, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

New iOS Data Protection setting for Google Chat protects data sharing between Google Workspace and personal Google accounts

Monday, September 13, 2021

What’s changing Earlier this year, we announced a new admin setting which restricts data and content sharing between Google Workspace accounts and personal Google accounts in Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides on iOS. We’re now expanding this to include Google Chat. With data protection, users can only share or save content—such as files, emails, chat messages, or copied & pasted content—within Google Workspace accounts. This will protect users from sharing a Chat message with their personal Google accounts or saving data to their personal account.
Sharing to personal Chat account can be blocked by admins

Sharing to personal Chat account can be blocked by admins

Admins can turn off sharing from company to personal Chat accountsWho’s impacted Admins and end users
Why it’s important Google applications on iOS support multi-user logins, allowing users to access Gmail, Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Chat and Slides with their personal and Google Workspace accounts. Giving admins the ability to control how data is shared across user accounts helps minimize accidental data sharing. Together with the previously released copy and paste and drag and drop restrictions and protections against data sharing between Google Workspace and personal Google accounts, these measures expand data protection coverage and help increase the security of your corporate data on iOS.
Getting started

Admins: Visit the Help Center to learn more about controlling whether users can copy work data to personal apps on iOS devices.

End users: There is no end user setting for this feature. When enabled by your admin, you will be able to securely share enterprise Google Chat content.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 13, 2021

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, and Education Plus customers

Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Google Help: Apply Settings For iOS Devices

Google Workspace Updates Blog: New iOS Data Protection setting protects data sharing between Google Workspace and personal Google accounts

Roadmap

This feature was listed as an upcoming release.

New “End meeting for all” action in the security investigation tool

Friday, September 10, 2021

Quick launch summary Admins can now remove all users and end selected meetings from the security investigation tool using the new “end meeting for all” action. You can use this feature to:

End multiple meetings within your organization,
Search for and end old meetings that are being used inappropriately,
Set up a rule to end meetings based on certain user actions. For example: admins can create a rule to automatically end a meeting where a user submits an abuse report

Important note: While Meeting hosts across all Google Workspace editions can end a meeting while inside a meeting, this feature allows Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus admins to end meetings from the security investigation tool.

Additional details Once the “end meeting for all” action is selected, the meeting will end for all users, including those in breakout rooms. Further, this will ensure that users cannot attend future instances of that meeting without the host being present. Users who are not on the Calendar invite for the meeting will have to knock to re-enter the meeting. Those users on the Calendar invite or invited in-meeting by the host will not have to knock.

Additionally, when an Admin ends a meeting, it will also turn off quick access for future instances of that meeting ID, however meeting hosts are able to turn the Quick access setting back on.

Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 10, 2021

Availability

Available to Google Workspace Enterprise Plus, Education Standard, and Education Plus customers
Not available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, Education Fundamentals, Frontline, and Nonprofits, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Review presentations more quickly with new viewing interface on Google Slides iOS app

Friday, September 10, 2021

Quick launch summary We’re improving the mobile viewing experience for Google Slides on iOS. To allow you to view more information at once, you can now:

Scroll through a vertical stream of slides,
Pinch to zoom to get a closer look,
Easily switch between editing, presenting, or casting content.

We hope these updates make it easier for you to read through, consume, and add or view comments in Slides while using a mobile device. This update is already available on Android.
Getting started

Rollout pace

Rapid and Scheduled Release domains: This feature is available now for all users.

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal accounts.

Resources

Google Workspace Help: How to use Google Slides

Material You, a new look and feel for Google Workspace apps, is rolling out now for Android

Thursday, September 9, 2021

Update[September 14, 2021]: We have updated this post to include availability for Keep. Material You will be available for Keep version 5.21.361. and newer beginning September 21, 2021.

What’s changingBeginning today, we’re rolling out Material You: a new design system for Google Workspace apps on Android devices. Material You features an updated, fresh look and feel for your apps, along with additional options for personalization. Some changes you’ll notice are:

updated navigation bars,

improved floating action buttons, and

use of Google Sans text for better readability in smaller font sizes

Who’s impacted

End users

Additional details

On Pixel devices with Android 12 or newer, you’ll have the option to match the colors of your apps to your device wallpaper for a more dynamic, personalized look.

To expand upon our existing accessibility support, Material You will automatically adjust contrast, size, and line width based on user preferences and app context. Pre-existing color schemes, for example color-coded file types, folder colors, or for in-app warnings, will remain unchanged.

Availability across Google Workspace apps:

Gmail

These changes are available on Gmail version 2021.08.24 and newer.

Google Meet

These changes will be available on Meet version 2021.09.19 and newer starting September 19.

Google Drive

These changes are available on Drive version 2.21.330 and newer starting September 9.

Google Docs, Sheets, Slides

These changes are available on Docs, Sheets and Slides version 1.21.342 and newer starting September 1.

Google Calendar

These changes are available on Google Calendar version 2021.37 and newer starting September 20.

KeepAvailable for Keep version 5.21.361. and newer beginning September 21.

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: On Android 12 and Pixel devices, you can view and select themes based on wallpaper colors applied by going to Settings > Wallpaper & style.

Rollout pace

Extended rollout (potentially longer than 15 days for feature visibility).

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers
Available to users with personal Google accounts

New effects settings panel in Google Meet

Thursday, September 9, 2021

Quick launch summaryWe’re introducing a new settings panel in Google Meet for quick access to effects such as background blur, background images and styles during Meet calls. This panel will also be available before joining a call in the green room self-check. In the green room, you can try out various effects to see how they work before joining a call with others.

Open the panel from the [three dot overflow] menu by selecting "Apply visual effects

Selecting effects in a Meet call

Selecting effects in the green room before a Meet call
Getting started

Admins: Visit the Help Center to learn more about controlling whether users can change their backgrounds in Meet. Note: the “Let users select custom images” option will be disabled by default for Education and Enterprise for Education domains.

End users: When enabled by your admin, visit the Help Center to learn more about changing your background in a video meeting to learn more about blurring your background in a video meeting, and previewing how you look and sound before a video call.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on September 9, 2021
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on Sept 16, 2021

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers

Resources

Updates

View Alert Center notifications directly from the Admin console toolbar

Quickly access Google Drive files in Chrome browser

Replace your background with a video in Google Meet on Android

Comment size increasing in Google Docs

Renaming “whitelisted domains” to “allowlisted domains” in the Admin console

Add image watermarks in Google Docs

Live translated captions in Google Meet available in beta

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap - September 21, 2021

Ability to mute all Google Meet participants at once rolling out to mobile platforms

Easily chat with meeting participants from a Google Calendar event

Perform refined email searches with new rich filters in Gmail on web

New graphs for metrics over time in Meet Quality Tool

Improved Search In Gmail on Android

One-click recommended actions in the Alert Center

Control the ability to present to Google Meet from Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides with a new Admin setting

Improved visibility in Google Meet on web

Upgrade to the newest version of the Google Chat app

Preventing users from blocking users in trusted domains

Design your own custom themes in new Google Sites

Set the default state for Quick access and Host Management in Google Meet with new Admin settings

New logo coming to Google Tasks

New iOS Data Protection setting for Google Chat protects data sharing between Google Workspace and personal Google accounts

New “End meeting for all” action in the security investigation tool

Review presentations more quickly with new viewing interface on Google Slides iOS app

Material You, a new look and feel for Google Workspace apps, is rolling out now for Android

New effects settings panel in Google Meet

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